Portret van een man c. 1860 - 1865

G. Hoogwinkel Jr. made this portrait of a man using photography sometime in the mid- to late-19th century. It exemplifies the rise of photography as a popular medium for portraiture, moving from the preserve of the wealthy to a broader middle class. Consider the context of the Dutch Golden Age and the rise of a powerful merchant class in the Netherlands. This new class had the economic means to commission portraits, reinforcing their status and identity through visual representation. Photography offered a modern, and perhaps more democratic, alternative to painted portraits, although the sitter’s formal pose and attire still speak of a certain social standing. Historians would use census records, social histories, and studies of photography's development to better understand this work. The image becomes a valuable document that reflects the changing social landscape of the time.